I've rather taken to this Twittering business! Not that I 'tweet' very often - just the occasional quote or comment - but it has become a source of interesting, and sometimes amusing, links and information. Some of the best bits I've read this week include:

Amusing:
 
Who, or what, was Jesus?
 
Something to get involved with:
 
Go Bananas

If you live near Coventry, UK
 
Something to ponder:
 
"A successful man is one who can lay a firm foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him." - David Brinkley.

• 0 comments »

My apologies to my readers for not updating this blog earlier. A much loved nephew of mine died at the weekend after two years of fighting cancer. He was 33 years old. So I have been a little preoccupied, to say the least. He was a wonderful man - funny, serious and committed, all at the same time - and he will be missed enormously.

And now its Ash Wednesday already. Actually, Lent feels an appropriate time for me to be entering just now. There is a gravity about Lent that has echoes with how I am currently feeling.

I have decided to do two things this Lent:

1. I am going to follow the Tearfund carbon fast and have made sure I don't neglect it by getting daily emails with the current day's suggested action. The action for today is this:

Day 1
Remove one light bulb from your home and live without it for the next 40 days. This will decrease your energy use and act as a reminder of what you are doing during Lent.

Now, I love light. I have a tendency to get gloomy thoughts during the days of winter, and I compensate by putting on lots of lights. So, for me, this will be an interesting fast. I am currently sitting in a hotel bedroom, so I have simply turned off one of the lights I would usually have on. When I get home - mmmm - which bulb shall I remove?! Perhaps I will be keen and remove two!

2. I am following an on-line weekly retreat called Days of Deepening Friendship. It gives a spiritual exercise for the week - something I will enjoy and, hopefully, learn from. Again, I have registered to receive emails so that I do not miss any week.

Note: If you wish to follow Reflections by email, you can enter your email address in the blue sidebar where it says 'Subscribe to Reflections by email'.

I wonder what others are doing for Lent? Giving something up? Doing something extra? Nothing? I would love to hear your answers in the comments to this blog.

One final thing - I have begun to twitter - on behalf of Reflections. You can find my twitterings - or 'tweets' - on the Reflectionsblog homepage. Please let me know if you tweet and I'll start to follow you. Are some of you completely bemused, now? Then just give it a go!

With my prayers for a challenging and rewarding Lent.

• 7 comments »